


Auxilium

by kampo



Category: Tom Clancy's The Division
Genre: BAMWU, Bambuzle Writing Universe, Dark Zone, Division Agents, Friends to Enemies, Gen, Possible Spoilers, Rogue Agents, rooty tooty gun and shooty
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-09
Updated: 2020-10-15
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:35:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,975
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26374339
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kampo/pseuds/kampo
Summary: After the events of the Tom Clancy's The Division two agents come to New York to help out with restoring the city back to order. They did not expect, though, what it's going to cost.
Comments: 5
Kudos: 6





	1. The backup

**Author's Note:**

> This fanfiction was born mostly because I've had some ideas about action scenes that could take place in the game and I also like to think of backstories and backgrounds for my characters in game, which resulted in the birth of Joaquin and Alice. The rest of the plot was either improvised or inspired by the expansion to the Division 2: Warlords of New York.

New York. Alice has not visited the city in ages. Frankly, she did not intend to visit it at all ever again, but life was funny like that sometimes. That is, if you find it funny that the whole world is now in crisis due to the Dollar Flu and that humanity was basically living in a post-apocalyptic world she had only known from fiction. Quite obviously only a handful of people had such a gruesome sense of humor.

She has heard that the Joint Task Force had been doing everything in their power to keep people from leaving the city. However they didn’t really care for the ones coming in, unless they happened to be an agent of The Strategic Homeland Division, in which case the relief was actually palpable. Since Alice was travelling with Joaquin Serrano, a man she was personally responsible for recruiting for the Division, the JTF were very happy.

This has struck her as odd, because there have already been several agents almost permanently set up in New York since Aaron Keener, the infamous first wave Division agent gone rogue, has escaped. Apparently a city as big as New York could use all the help it could get. Surely the most urgent problems have been solved, but there must still be a lot to do everyday to keep the population alive.

Since the Last Man Battalion has been mostly dealt with and their SAMs were inoperational, they arrived in Manhattan via a helicopter. At the helipad they were greeted by Faye Lau, the acting commander of the Division in New York.

“I’m really glad you’re here!”

She had to shout for them to hear her over the noise. Even though she was not physically the most imposing person, she carried herself as if she was the baddest bitch around, calm and steady, yet dangerous. The eye patch she had to wear over her right eye only made her more intimidating. Alice believed that surviving a VTOL crash and taking over New York have actually earned her that reputation fair and square.

“Agent Campbell, Agent Serrano,” she continued. “I’m afraid you won’t have much time to rest.” She motioned towards the exit and started walking. “We’ll need to get to the Pennsylvania Plaza on foot, there you’ll get your first assignments”.

“We’re happy to help, Ma’am!” said Joaquin enthusiastically. He was always eager to please.

“You’ll eat those words soon, trust me.” Lau replied with a grin. She was already warming up to him, which Alice found both irritating and amusing.

They have reached the former James Forley Post Office, now functioning as the Base of Operations for the Joint Task Force, in a short time. Alice has noticed that even though everything seemed rather calm and there were no looters in sight, Faye Lau never took her hand off her sidearm, ready to defend herself at a moment’s notice. Following her example, Alice held firmly to her C36C, constantly monitoring the surroundings.

“Make yourself at home.” Lau said when they entered through the decontamination area. “If you need any gear you should talk to Andrew, he’s the short one on the left, behind the desk. He’ll hook you up with something. Take a moment to look around and meet me upstairs in ten minutes, I’ve got some business to attend to.”

“Sure beats anything we’ve had out there in the country!” Joaquin was thrilled at the sight of the base. There were people rushing around, computer equipment and crates took up most of the space by the walls and yet the base was spacious enough to still leave plenty of room for everybody.

“Focus, Serrano.” Alice smiled at him, rummaging through her backpack. “I swear to God, you’re like a child anytime we go to a bigger city.”

“I can’t help it, Al, I’ve grown up in the village and I’ve never been to New York!” he took off his backpack and checked the inventory.

“What’s left of it anyway.”

“And still so impressive!” he grinned at her. “Damn, I’m running low on first aid kits.”

“That’s because all it takes for you to give them away is for anyone to make puppy dog eyes at you!” she laughed handing him a kit.

“And that’s wrong how?” he asked. “We’re supposed to help people. So I help!”

“I’m not saying it’s wrong, I’m saying you give it away like candy on Halloween.” She pulled out a box of ammo and counted the rounds quickly. “Let’s wrap this up, shall we, Lau’s not going to wait forever and I am hungry as fuck!”

They found Andrew in no time. He proved to be really helpful, gave them what they needed and then while some refusing any kind of payment. Then he pointed them toward the person who gave them several cans of fruit and meat. Alice had to admit that she enjoyed being treated kind of like a hero or a celebrity. She may not have earned her reputation here in the city yet, but she had her share of good deeds and more than a few dozens of lives saved here and there.

They’ve easily found Faye Lau on the first floor, busy talking with some people hunched over a map of the Manhattan. When she noticed them, she perked up and excused herself from the group. She motioned towards the side room and went on ahead.

“The island is not as dangerous as it was just weeks ago,” she began, sitting on a plastic chair, “but it’s hardly a safe place now. The JTF needs to have some supplies transported to the Broadway and 53rd Street. They have a vehicle running so there won’t be any heavy lifting, but they need an escort.”

She rubbed her nose between her thumb and index finger. Alice thought that Faye really could use some more sleep, but she understood that there are more important things than personal needs.

“Unfortunately the only way the vehicle can pass through the streets goes through an area where the remnants of the Rikers are still operating. They won’t resist going after the vehicle for sure and we can’t afford to lose what’s inside. Mostly medicine.” She added, as Joaquin was opening his mouth.

He went silent with a hint of a sheepish smile.

“I wish I could sent more agents with you, but everyone in this city has their hands full. I have been postponing the convoy specifically because of your message that you were on your way here. Any questions?”

Alice straightened her back.

“How many JTF personnel will be accompanying us?” Something in Lau made Alice feel like she was a student back at school.

“Only the skeleton crew: the driver and a navigator. You’re mostly on your own, Agents. Anything else?”

“Yes, um, when are we moving out, Ma’am?” Joaquin seemed nervous. He always seemed nervous right before a mission; luckily he regained his focus easily while he’s in the field. He’d be a poor agent otherwise.

“The sooner the better. Ideally you’d move out right away, the others are ready. They’re dependable, you don’t have to worry about that.”

At that Alice stood up.

“Then what are we waiting for?”

###

The vehicle proved to be an old, open back truck with several heavy-looking crates already loaded. Faye Lau proved to be a woman of her word: the driver and the navigator were already waiting by the truck, all geared up and ready. As soon as Alice and Joaquin exited the building the tall, stocky man in an old army uniform approached them hastily.

“You must be the Division agents!” he sounded really happy to see them. “It’s great to meet you, I’m Terrence Jenkins.” He extended his hand.

“Like the actor?” asked Joaquin with a raised eyebrow.

“That’s right, though we’re not related.” He smiled. He turned his head over his shoulder and shouted at his partner. “Angie, come over here! The agents have arrived!”

The woman, who was checking something by the truck, came over without a hurry. She was almost as tall as Alice and emanated a certain strength both physical and of her character.

“Agents,” she nodded at them, “Angelina Genovese. I’ll be your navigator today.”

“This is New York, can’t we just load up a GPS and go?” Joaquin asked bluntly.

“You’re welcome to try, but good luck with this many abandoned cars, trash and rubble. This is why I’m here, I’ve been part of the crew that’s trying to clear the streets and I’m most likely to know the way.”

“Didn’t mean to offend”, he added, sheepishly.

“No offence taken.”

“You former military?” Alice measured her up.

“Rescue company at the NYFD.”

“Rescue?” laughed Joaquin.

“And that’s funny how?” Angelina looked offended.

“No, not funny at all, I used to be with the Explorer Search and Rescue in Washington.”

Angelina immediately seemed to warm up to him a little.

“Why, maybe not every agent is useless, after all.” Seeing a puzzled look on their faces, she added “You all come in, start shooting and consider the problem solved. It’s guys like us in the JTF that actually do the heavy lifting, help the civilians and keep the city running. Not everything can be solved with a bullet, you know, but most agents I’ve met were trigger happy maniacs.”

“We’re not all like that”, explained Alice.

“Yeah, the two of us?” Added Joaquin, “We prefer knives.”

Angelina laughed at that and pointed at the truck.

“Alright, you seem cool. Let’s get moving then, agents.”

Alice was surprised that the vehicle has worked as smoothly as it did. Being paralyzed in the street for months, especially during such a severe winter, left most of the vehicles inoperational and the gas could no longer be used. That is, unless you’ve had a skilled mechanic who could work miracles. Apparently JTF had just enough luck for that. The truck was also slightly reinforced in the front to help it push away some of the debris or trash that was not yet removed from the streets.

The first couple of blocks neighboring the Base of Operations were relatively free of obstacles and they went through them almost without a pause. The further they drove, though, the harder it got. The navigator was constantly consulting the hand drawn map of hers but even despite her best efforts they got stuck once or twice and had to find another way.

The problem with New York was that even though it wasn’t nearly as busy as it was before, there was still a large number of people living in it, constantly looting, checking abandoned vehicles for supplies and moving them around. Even ISAC’s GPS wasn’t much of a help, since it depended on a previously uploaded data. The truck’s reinforced front came in handy several times, also Joaquin and Alice had to go out there and and move away some of the things that were blocking.

The progress was slow, but steady. Normally the trip would take around ten minutes by car if the traffic was okay. They have been driving for half an hour now and they’ve slowed down significantly ever since they came dangerously close to the boundaries of the Dark Zone.

“Have you ever been inside?” asked the driver, looking back at the agents. “In the DZ?”

“Not yet.” Admitted Alice calmly. “Probably will soon, though.”

“You think?” asked Joaquin excitedly. “I can’t wait. I mean…” he began, seeing the confused look on the face of the navigator, “there’s lots of things that we can find there that can be very helpful to everyone here.”

“Hang on,” Alice interrupted him, placing her hand on his shoulder. She’s been looking at the holographic map that ISAC produced for her. She had it scan the area constantly in search of possible threats. “ISAC has picked something up.”

“Threats?”

“Can’t be sure yet. Armed for sure. Jenkins, stop the vehicle and get your guns out. Serrano, with me.”

The agents jumped off the truck and hid behind the nearest car. Alice made sure her G36C’s safety was off and she saw Joaquin do the same with his MP5. She nodded at him and Joaquin had his ISAC send a pulse that marked each possible hostile in the nearest vicinity.

“Seven targets.” He said silently. “All coming from the same direction. They don’t seem to be in any formation, which would point at Rikers. Not ideal, but could be worse. What do you suggest?”

“I’ll go left and try to get as close as possible. Have a flashbang ready, throw it on my mark.”

“We try to do this the easy way?”

“We can’t really cuff them and bring with us!” Alice sounded resentful.

“We can try to force them to run away.” Joaquin tried, but she cut him off.

“They will hurt somebody else. We need to stop them.”

He muttered something under his breath, agreeing reluctantly.

Alice moved away, making sure to stay low and hidden. Thanks to the ISAC’s pulse she knew exactly where each of the criminals was, which made her job a lot easier. They kept getting closer, clearly looking for something. It was weird, she thought, as they should not have known about the transport. Yes, they were prepared for an encounter, but only if they would be spotted. These guys seemed to be actively looking for the vehicle. Something did not add up.

She checked Joaquin’s position and when she saw he was where she needed him, she reached back to unclip the seeker mine from her backpack. She prepped the mine, dropped it on the ground and activated the tactical link with Serrano.

Fraction of a second later she’s heard the cling of a grenade bouncing off the asphalt, a sharp cry of surprise and then a loud bang with an explosion of light. Her seeker mine rolled quickly towards the three thugs that were grouped together in the middle, but before it even got close Alice was already prepped against the hood of the car she was hiding behind. She pulled the trigger of her rifle and a short, controlled burst hit one of the threats square in the chest before her mine exploded.

She has acquired another target that was trying to blindly find his way out of the kill zone and downed him as well. She looked around for any remaining targets, but it seemed that Joaquin and her mine took care of the rest. Quick and efficient with no complications, that’s how she liked it best.

“You okay?” she heard Serrano call out to her, popping from behind a car on the opposite side of the street.

“Peachy!”

They met in the middle of the street, looking around at the mess.

“Something doesn’t add up.” Serrano sounded weak.

“Yeah, I thought so, too. They weren’t supposed to know we’ll be here.”

“And yet they knew. They have been looking for us. And look at their gear,” he pointed to the nearest corpse. “Those are Rikers, and yet this is military grade equipment.”

“And they moved… in an organized fashion. That’s odd.”

“Maybe some of them used to be military and started teaching them the basics?”

“Multiple threats detected.” Their conversation was stopped by ISAC’s warning. Alice consulted the holographic map.

“Fuck, the truck!”

She started sprinting towards the vehicle, Joaquin hard on her heels. Was it all a distraction? She tried to contact the crew at the vehicle, but they didn’t answer. Alice didn’t like the thoughts that were running through her head. When the truck was finally in sight, she shouted at the driver to start backing up, but he didn’t seem to hear her. He did see her, though, and must have drawn the right conclusions himself. The truck started up and slowly began to roll backwards.

It was all too late, though. Alice noticed a group of Rikers, much larger than the one they’ve encountered a minute before, coming right at the truck from three different sides. The driver noticed them as well and stepped hard on the gas, but he must have been too frantic, because the truck’s engine had died.

She saw that Angelina was leaving the truck, weapon at the ready. It was a foolish thing to do, Alice knew that, but she couldn’t stop her. She shouted as loud as she could, but they were still too far for her to hear her and listen to her warning. The navigator noticed some of the Rikers, shouted something at the driver and brought up the gun to her cheek. She didn’t manage to fire off a single shot before she got downed by a concentrated fire from several weapons.

Joaquin screamed and fired off half a mag full auto just to grab the attention of the attackers. He succeeded only partially, the group closest to them took cover and returned fire, but the other two units were still closing in on the vehicle. Joaquin’s pulse marked three groups of seven targets each. The odds were definitely not in their favor.

“We need to get to Terrence fast!” he screamed at Alice, who was already switching cover.

“We’ll never make it in time, there’s too many of them! We need to wait for backup!” She said, manipulating her watch. She has just sent a request for other agents to assist.

“Watch me!” He taunted, jumping over the car he was hiding behind.

He was still hovering over the vehicle when a black sheet started unfolding in front of his left arm. When he landed in a crouch, he was already hidden behind a ballistic shield. The nearest enemies instantly opened fire on him, testing the shield’s integrity, but the High Performance Polyethylene held up. He kept advancing, giving Alice a chance to pick them out. Rikers may have received high quality gear and some training, but they were an undisciplined bunch. They made stupid mistakes, which made them easy targets instead.

Joaquin was halfway towards the vehicle when the other groups realized they were the major threat. The incoming fire was too much for the shield to handle and he had to hide in the nearest shop. Luckily the Rikers didn’t pack enough firepower to penetrate thicker walls.

Alice was already on the other side of the street, hiding behind a car. Wisely she kept low, as the car could not provide a good enough cover for her. She launched another Seeker Mine that was easy to miss in the firefight. The explosion took out a couple of the enemies, but there were still too many of them. She was down to her last magazine. Joaquin had spare ammo, but their weapons were not compatible, so it was all up to him now. That is, if they could get out in the open and not get themselves killed.

“Incoming backup.” ISAC has said in a calm, mechanical voice.

The vehicle with the medical supplies started to drive away and Alice felt a wave of relief that Jenkins would get out of this alive, maybe. Then she heard a continuous honk of the car horn and the truck halted to a stop.

“God damn it!” She screamed. “Serrano, we need to get the truck!”

“There’s no point! We’re outnumbered! JTF are done for! Back up is Oscar Mike, we need to hold out!”

“If we wait any longer they’ll take the vehicle! Go, I’ll cover you!”

With that she threw a flashbang and when it exploded, Joaquin sprinted towards nearest cover. Alice was also moving up, carefully picking targets and downing them with one or two shots, not enough to kill, but probably enough to incapacitate them. She was down to half a mag. “This is getting nasty”, she thought.

And then she heard Serrano scream in pain. She noticed him huddled behind a dumpster in a fetal position. Alice felt ice run through her veins. She took out her last grenade and used the distraction to get closer to Joaquin. Only a few meters separated them, but with the incoming fire she couldn’t risk getting out of cover.

“Serrano, status!” She called to him over the radio.

“I’ve got hit,” he groaned “but I don’t think I’m dying. Yet.”

“Shit! You’re the medic, will you be okay till the backup arrives?”

It seemed like the Rikers were more concerned with getting to the vehicle than killing off the agents, since they’ve stopped advancing, though they didn’t care for the ammunition.

“Yeah, I’ll be just fine.” His voice was sounding weak, undermining his assurance. “Just focus and don’t let them get to you, someone’s got to carry me away.”

Alice has switched to her side arm and kept watch. Luckily most of the Rikers turned their attention towards the vehicle, but there were still some shooting in her general direction. Occasionally she’d pop a few rounds blindly in hopes of pushing them a bit back, but she was also holding her last seeker mine at the ready.

In the distance the truck’s engine roared back to life and the vehicle started moving again. Alice was furious, their whole assignment has gone to shit and the precious cargo was driving away and there was absolutely nothing she could do about it. She couldn’t stop the Rikers, she couldn’t attack, she couldn’t get to Serrano and fall back either.

“ISAC, where’s the fucking back up? They were supposed to be incoming!”

“Backup is en route, currently engaged in a firefight two blocks away.”

“Fuck!”

Was it possible the Rikers have planned for backup? How many people did they sent for this truck? Nothing made sense.

“Serrano, how are you holding up?”

She saw he was trying to dress his wounds best he could, which couldn’t have been easy in his state.

“Don’t worry, I’m about to be able to move.”

“Good, because our backup will be too late to help us.”

“Help us with what? They took the vehicle, didn’t they?”

“Yup. And now they seem to be coming for us!”

He cursed in Spanish quickly, then tried to get up.

“Okay, my shield should last a little while longer…”

“You are not drawing them away from me!”

“Shut up! Take my MP5, I’ve got two mags left and can’t use the gun anyway one handed. I’ll try to get their attention and you’ll pick some of them out. That should slow them down - then we run like hell. You in?”

It was a crazy idea and Alice knew this. She also knew she didn’t have a better plan, so she grunted in agreement. She dashed for cover closer to Joaquin and he tossed her his submachine gun. She made sure the safety’s off and fired off a couple of shots in the vicinity of the closest target. As she expected, a few of them ducked behind cover and her last seeker mine was already on the move. Joaquin raised his shield and popped out of cover, trying to make sure he’s protected as he backed away quickly. Some of the Rikers opened fire and Alice was quick to follow, then the explosion hit them and she dashed away, trying to gain as much distance as possible.

She soon overtook Joaquin, who had some difficulty moving, but did not slow down. Alice fired some more shots, downing at least one target. They were stubborn, but heavy casualties seemed to scare them off enough that Alice has actually begun believing they’ll get out of this alive.

She motioned over to Joaquin to make him go a little bit faster, but then he collapsed on the ground. She noticed the makeshift dressing on his wound completely soaked with blood. Ignoring her own safety she sprinted towards him and dragged him behind the closest bit of cover. She was trying to recall the first aid required in this case, but her mind went completely blank. She reached for Serrano’s pockets looking for bandages and dressings, but suddenly her hands were shaking and she couldn’t focus.

She was startled when a hand was placed on her shoulder and reflexively tried to fight back, but it proved to be one of the agents who had responded to her backup request. The other agent was also there and together they gently moved her away and started to patch Serrano up.

“Will… will he be okay?” She asked weakly.

There was a pause as the agents worked on her friend. Then, finally, one of them answered.

“If we get him to the medical facility soon he might be.”


	2. The uneasiness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Recovering from a serious wound Joaquin receives news that force him to finish his convalescence early.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is a bit dialogue heavy, sorry for that, it felt like the best way to flesh out some of Joaquin's characteristics.

The medical wing of the post office was the closest thing New York had that resembled a hospital from before the Dollar Flu, though the resemblance was mostly arfiticial. Everywhere was crowded and there was equipment salvaged from former hospitals on almost every horizontal surface that could hold it. Despite all that, the staff was completely overworked and in constant need of help. Since Serrano was still recovering from his gunshot wound and blood loss, he’s volunteered as an EMT to help out everywhere he could. But since he was still recovering there wasn’t much he could do, though he was very thankful to have _anything_ to do. In the first weeks after he got wounded he was only allowed to lie down and rest. Serrano hated resting. They didn’t even let him go outside to have a smoke, and smoking was severely prohibited in the building. If he had to be honest with himself, he’d rather get through the pain of getting shot again than suffer all this restlesness. So administering pills and taking people’s blood was extremely helpful in fighting off the boredom of being stuck here for at least several more weeks.

He was standing outside of the entrance to the Base of Operations, smoking one of the cigarettes Andrew from Supplies gave him earlier that day. Faye was adamant he doesn’t wander too far from the post office, but has given him his sidearm back, just in case. Shooting the damned thing was still quite painful due to his wound not being fully healed up yet, but Faye argued it’s better to be in pain than dead. He found it hard to disagree with that logic. The possibility of the base being attacked was virtually non-existant, but nonetheless he felt much safer with his USP on his thigh. New York might be calmer now, but it was still kind of an active warzone, even with most of the factions crippled.

Alice has visited him a couple of times, but she never stayed long. Sure, she was busy, as was every other SHD agent in the city, but Joaquin suspected that she felt guilty that he got shot because of her insisting on saving the vehicle with the supplies. Sure, he was first to charge the Rikers that day, but it was when the JTF personnel was still alive. He couldn’t forgive himself if he didn’t at least try to save them, even against great odds, but didn’t feel compelled to sacrifice his life for a bunch of crates. Alice, well, she was always objective oriented and the mission has always come first.

Joaquin couldn’t help but wonder if their failure was due to their relatively low experience with New York and it’s gangs. After all the two of them mostly operated in smaller towns and villages, where they usually were not fighting against organized crime, dealing mostly with rowdy and trigger happy civilians who tried to use the fact law enforcement was non-existant now. Sure, they had their training, every Division agend did, but maybe it was not enough and going to New York was too much for them? Especially that he himself was mostly experienced with search and rescue type of operations, which did not involve this much shooting, usually. 

It didn’t help that Faye Lau wasn’t angry with him. Sure, she was angry, Joaquin rarely had the pleasure of hearing such diverse array of swearwords, but she didn’t take it out on neither him nor Alice. He wasn’t sure if she assumed the mission was going to fail from the beginning or if she - quite logically, actually - figured that two against twenty-odd enemies was a little bit too much, even for Division agents. But Joaquin couldn’t bare but think that if she’d scolded him for being brash and reckless he’d somehow take it better. He’d have the excuse that he failed, he could do something another way, improve somehow. But this told him that he was facing limits he couldn’t simply overcome and it was a thought too heavy on his conscience.

He finished his smoke and went back inside. He was on his way to the medical wing when he heard someone calling out to him.

“Hey, Serrano!” It was Andrew, the guy who was tasked with providing gear and supplies, waving him towards the desk. “I think I’ve got something you’re going to like!”

Joaquin checked his watch and approached the desk. Andrew was a nice guy, very helpful, but he could, on ocassion, be a bit overly eager.

“What is up?”

“I think I’ve got what you asked for.” After the failed mission, with all the commotion with Joaquin bleeding out, his submachine gun was left on the street and forgotten. JTF have offered him one of their AR-15s, but they were too big and clunky for his liking, so he asked Andrew to keep an eye out for something smaller in size. “It came this morning and I’ve just unpacked it. Haven’t tested it or anything yet, but I think it’d be exactly what you needed!”

He pulled a rifle from under his desk and placed it on display. 

“416?”

“Heckler und Koch 416C!” Andrew stressed the last letter. “The barrel’s significantly shorter, so if you switch the stock for something smaller than the standard issue, it won’t be much bigger than your previous weapon!”

“Okay.” Serrano agreed with a smile. “This is indeed something interesting.”

“Damn right it is! Plus, you know, in NY you don’t have to worry about the range, so the drawbacks are fairly insignificant! And it has some serious stopping power, not like your previous nine milimeter!”

“There’s one drawback I can see.” Joaquin’s shoulders dropped a little. “I don’t have anything to pay you with, not at this moment.”

“Don’t worry about this!” Andrew laughed, waving his hand dismissively. “You’ll bring me something nice while you get back to the city, deal?”

Joaquin smiled at that and shook his hand over the desk. He didn;t expect to be out in the field anytime soon but knowing he might have a weapon that would suit his preferences was an optimistic one. He thanked Andrew and hurried back to the medical wing.

###

He didn’t expect to see Nicky there, yet here she was, still with all of her gear on - she must have just returned from the city. Nicky - well, actually Nicola - was one of the two agents that came to their aid when Joaquin was shot. She dropped by on occasion to see how he was doing whenever she was nearby, which meant she was actually seeing him more often than Alice had. Not that he felt bitter about that or anything. 

“Hey Quino! How are you holding up?” She has asked him with a warm smile.

“Nicky! Hey! Doing good, keeping busy, you see!” 

He was genuinely happy to see her, though he felt a bit bad about her wasting time visiting him so often.

“What brings you to me today? Missed my jokes and my smile?”

“One of those, yes.” She replied, sitting down on the floor. “Care to join me down here?”

He sat down, slightly worried. He didn’t remember her ever sitting down and her face changed, too, now all gloomy and serious. Something bad must have happened for sure.

“What is it, Nicky?” He stared at the nearby wall, waiting for the blow.

“Your wristwatch is on stand-by, isn’t it?” 

“Yeah, Lau insisted ISAC give me some space since I am not ready to get back in the field.” He brought his right arm to his eye level. “Said it would be too tempting to get out there.”

“She’s a smart woman.” Nicky agreed silently. “And I bet she wouldn’t want me to tell you this, but since Alice was your partner I believe you deserve to know.”

“Is she okay?” His voice was weak with anxiety.

“I guess.” Nicky replied cautiously. “Do you know James Dragov?”

“Should I?”

“He was a Division agent like us, first wave. Thought to have been killed or captured by Rikers. He was the one who recommended Alice to the SHD, you didn’t know that?”

“It’s not like she’s open about her past…” Joaquin hesitated. Has she ever mentioned him before and he simply forgot?

“Anyway, he is not dead. He was recently seen in the city. Rumor has it he’s been busy leading the Rikers since Barret’s been dealt with. An agent swore he saw him a couple of days ago in the Dark Zone.”

“Okay, but what has this to do with Alice?”

“Well… She’s been in the DZ ever since. It’s been four days since she went in, didn’t come back so far.”

“Can’t ISAC find her?”

“You have never been to the DZ before, ISAC’s signal get’s lost often. I bet a skilled technician could, in theory, cheat ISAC’s sensors even. What I’m trying to say, we don’t really know where she’s been or what’s she been doing there. It’s just… Most agents who spend so much time over there usually end up going rogue.”

“So what, you’re telling me she’s joined Dragov?”

“I’m telling you she’s been gone for a couple of days. Maybe she’s looking for him, I dunno, some personal agenda or something, to bring him in? We can’t really say. But since it’s been so long, I thought you should know. And maybe prepare for the worst.”

“Thank you.”

It was all Joaquin could say. His thoughts were rushing, trying to make sense of what he’s learned just now. He knew Alice for quite some time, but did he know her well? He might not have known her at all, he suddenly realized. He couldn’t give himself an honest answer that would ring true. He didn’t want to believe she’d go rogue, not without serious reasons. But why would she stay in the Dark Zone for so long without coming back to surface, so to speak? 

He suddenly felt guilty. He’s already accused her of betraying SHD and the more obvious, more probable option didn’t even cross his mind. What if she was hurt? Taken prisoner? What if…

“Say, Nicky… when you said I should prepare for the worst, did you mean her being dead or going rogue?”

“Listen, Serrano. You don’t just go betray everything you’ve stood for, everything we’ve been fighting for, everyone we’ve been defending. That’s just unacceptable. If it were me? I’d sooner shoot myself in the head.”

###

Joaquin has just left the operating room after they’ve failed to save a man’s life. A young guy, not even twenty five, former firefighter. Ironically, severely burned by the Cleaners in some random encounter. The surgeon on call did everything in his power, more even, with Joaquin and another nurse helping as best as they could. Still, it wasn’t enough. To be fair, Serrano was pretty sure they couldn’t save his life even in the best of times with the best equipment they could imagine, which didn’t mean they wouldn’t have tried anyway. This didn’t help ease his conscience at all. He went out for a smoke after what felt like a first time in a week since he got into the operating room.

He sat down on some stairs, inhaling numerous poisons and letting his eyes just wander around. He tried to empty his head and just… be. No thoughts, no emotions. 

It didn’t work. He realized he was looking at his wristwatch for a while now. Just before they brought the man they were operating on he was very tempted to turn ISAC on and head out looking for Alice. He felt like he owed her that after she and the others saved his life in that fight with Rikers. She might have believed he got shot because of her, but it was just another risk that came with the job. Hell, it wasn’t the first time he got shot or blacked out because of a blood loss for that matter. If it weren’t for Alice, Nicky and the other agent, Diver or something like that, he’d be gone for sure. So he owed Alice at least an attempt to find her in the Dark Zone.

On the other hand, he has pushed himself to his limits during the operation - he was still not fully healed and he felt that sorely, which was one of the reasons he perched himself on the stairs. Moving out too early would probably mean he’d end up dead and achieve nothing. Yet he couldn’t just sit around and wait, not when Alice’s whereabouts were unknown. He looked again at his wristwatch and took ISAC off of stand-by. Maybe he wasn’t ready to go back in the field, but he wouldn’t let it stop him. 

###

“Serrano, you can’t be serious.”

Faye Lau didn’t seem angry on the surface, but something in the tone of her voice made him feel like she was scolding him.

“I thought I asked you to keep ISAC on stand-by.”

“Yes, well, since it was a request, I thought I could refuse.”

He met her gaze and somehow he managed not to turn his eyes away. 

“I knew it would come to this if you turned ISAC back on. Damn it, Serrano, we’ve lost too many good people to have someone so promising go into the Dark Zone unprepared and barely able to walk.”

“If I succeed, we’ll have an additional agent back.”

“And if you don’t, we’re down another one. Use your head, damn it!”

“So send someone with me! Like this Diver guy or Thyme! They’re capable!”

“This is why I didn’t want you to find out about Campbell. You know everyone’s got their hands full. I can’t just make them drop everything and go on a wild goose chase because you care about somebody. You see, the problem is that everyone cares about somebody, we have to be above it! It’s not about me, Campbell, about Thyme or Meyer or even you. This is about the city and all the people who depend on us. As an agent you should know that.”

“You know I’ll go anyway, don’t you?” He kept his gaze firm.

“I know I cannot stop you unless I physically restrain you. I just don’t think you’ll return in one piece if you go to the DZ in your shape. Face it, Joaquin,” it was the first time she’s used his name, he noticed, “Campbell is either dead or rogue. Neither is good, but you can’t also do anything good about it. But the decision’s yours. If you’re going to do what I think you will, at least be prepared. Talk to someone who has experience. Thyme or Meyer should be willing to help you out as much. Just don’t endanger anyone else’s life, Serrano.”

###

Joaquin has decided to wait for Meyer outside of the Post Office. The guy was late, but it was hardly a surprise since there was always something that required agents’ attention. Joaquin was smoking again, just to kill the time. He was sweating a little, even though the day was chilly, but in an attempt to hide his weakened state he has put on some of his gear on, ignoring a full bulletproof armor in favor of a light harness with minimal equipment. Still, it felt heavy and he didn’t feel even remotely comfortable, but he wanted to be as close to duty-ready as possible.

Finally ISAC informed him that Blaze “Diver” Meyer was incoming. Joaquin put out his cigarette and straightened his back.

“Serrano.” Blaze nodded towards him.

“Agent Meyer. I understand that thanks are in order. If it weren’t for you I might have been dead.”

“No thanks needed, I’d do this for anyone, Agent or civilian.”

“Still, you’ll understand why I feel at least a little bit thankful, I hope.”

“Sure, yeah. How are you holding up?”

“Been better, been worse. I’m almost healed up now. Been active around the post office, I think it did me good and I didn’t get stiff from lying around all day. But you know that already. And I need your help.”

“You’ve mentioned, yes.” He sat down on the stairs and Joaquin followed his lead. “So you’ve never been to the Dark Zone.”

“Yeah, well, I’ve been in New York for less than a day when I got shot.”

“That’s still better than some people I’ve known. Anyways… DZ is a dangerous place. Much more than most of the city. Most of the zone is still heavily contaminated, so you should always be wearing a mask with a fresh set of filters. And don’t skip the decontamination after you’re back.”

“Okay, how about something less obvious?” Joaquin asked with a combination of a frown and a smile.

“This shit is important, Serrano. Somebody hits your mask, you’re as good as dead. Anyways, you will be on your own.”

“I’ve heard ISAC doesn’t work well in the zone?”

“I mean… there’s still some places where the signal works and most of the offline functions still work, so your gear and proximity warnings should be okay. But you can’t really count on backup or sending a distress signal. And that’s not the most terrifying thing there.”

Meyer became silent as if lost in thought. 

“There is something dark in there, metaphorically speaking, that makes the worst come out of people. That’s why it’s dangerous. People become even more ruthless, even more brutal… And since ISAC isn’t online, it’s easier for agents to do things they wouldn’t otherwise.”

“How do you mean?”

“You can do whatever you like and ISAC won’t mark you as rogue. Imagine if you attacked another agent. Normally ISAC would instantly mark you and everybody would know what you’ve done. But in the Dark Zone nobody will know. It’s a temptation, and agents are only human, after all. Some use that to settle a grudge. Some for personal gain. And nobody. Will. Know.”

Joaquin held his breath uncomfortably long, waiting to hear whatever Blaze has to say next. He never expected to hear such things, he’s always seen agents as beacons of hope, sort of real life superheroes who work hard to ensure safety of everyone around them. He always assumed those who have gone rogue must have had really good reasons to do so. But to settle a grudge, it was so… lowbrow. 

“There’s also the gangs, but you already know that. Hard to be more ruthless than they get. Maybe only a little bit more desperate.”

Meyer kept talking. Serrano kept listening. It seemed like it would be a long converstaion, after all.

###

It took Joaquin three additional days to gather every information he needed. He wanted to move out as soon as possible, but he had to be honest with himself - he wasn’t ready. And since he couldn’t be physically ready too soon, he had to prepare himself any other way he could and hope those additional few days would be beneficial for his health as well. 

He’s spent most of his time going through ISAC’s data about last hours of Alice’s activity, as scarce as the data was. Then he read up all he could find on possible sightings of James Dragov. The man was of no interest to him, but since Alice wanted to find him, he had to know where she’d start looking and where she could go next. Unfortunally there wasn’t much. There was an increased activity from the Rikers and Cleaners recently, but only the former might have some connection to the man, since he was last seen on the Rikers Island, where he went rogue. He marked all the locations on his ISAC just in case. Judging by Alice’s entry point to the DZ she might have come to similar conlusions - there were a couple of entrances to the DZ, all heavily guarded by automated turrets and the one she used was relatively close to the areas of Rikers’ activity.

Having established his immediate plan of action, following Meyer’s advice he checked the reports of other agents that have been to DZ. He tried to memorize as much data as possible, hoping it could come in handy and save his life. Gang tactics, potential safe houses and especially the emergency extraction points that could be used to climb onto a helicopter to leave - assuming one would arrive. 

He’s spent hours reading maps and learning them by heart, just so that he could try to navigate the zone without needing to refer to maps or ISAC. For one, in the heat of the moment he might not have the time to consult a map. Another thing was that since ISAC wasn’t so reliable inside the DZ, he wanted to keep his dependance on it to a minimum. It wasn’t anythng new to him, since most of his career as an agent he was deployed in rural or suburban areas where ISAC’s signal was patchy at best and even before that working Search and Rescue missions he didn’t have such fancy gear and had to rely on his memory and brain to do the heavy lifting.

When he felt like he’s read everything there was to read and memorized everything he could, he started preparing his gear. His backpack was full of first aid kits and lots of rope, a couple of additional magazines - Joaquin was sincerely hoping he won’t have to shoot his way out of anything - three knives in addition to the four he usually carried on himself and then some food rations. He didn’t want to spend more than a few hours at a time in the Dark Zone, but he prefered to be prepared for the worst. He added two backup filters for his mask and finally, almost as an afterthought, he packed three flashlights. He put on the backpack, groaned with its weight, and left the Base of Operations.

He had only one more stop to go on his way to the DZ. Since it was already early in the morning, he decided to go to the nearest safe house and catch at least a few hours of sleep. Based on the records he’s read Joaquin assumed the best way to get inside the zone would be at night, when there’s usually lower hostile activity - and hopefully those active would be tired, and he’d be fresh after a nap. 

When he woke up, it was already dark - which wasn’t surpsising, since it was winter. He felt good about his trip, though he was stressed and felt the knot in his stomach tighten as he approached the Dark Zone entrance. It was a post set up with heavy, metal and sturdy doors. Inside there was a JTF officer who agreed to disable the sentry turrets guarding the entrance from the inside of the zone for the time Joauqin needed to get away from it. The IFF systems may have been set up in place, but Joaquin didn’t want to trust his life to an algorithm. Given the signal from the officer, Joaquin opened the door and stepped out.

“Biohazard warning. Entering the contaminated zone.” ISAC’s voice, robotic as always, sounded sinister. “Transmissions jammed. Proximity coverage only.” ISAC glitched a couple of times. “Backup activated. System rebooted. Caution: Entering Dark Zone.”


End file.
